are meerly by a frequent Repetition of her own Acts or by the interposition of the Understanding which clearly seeing that such or such things are to be done presses and prevails upon the Will to be always ready to do them These ways are both efficacious but the later the more Natural and less changeable For the will according to the designe of nature is to be led by the Understanding and indeed in some sence cannot be led otherwise there being some co-operation of the Understanding to that first Act of the Will the repetition of which afterwards produces the Habit. For unless the action had first been thought fit to be done it would not have been done at all But if the Understanding contributed but litle 't is more chance and luck than Reason that the Action haps to be good which is not connatural our nature requiring a rational proceeding in all things Again it is also less lasting for as Use produces Disuse will lose it and should the Understanding as not being first settled it self it well may come to cross the operations of the Will by contrary judgments or even doubts the Will would waver and act faintly first and after perhaps not at all But a Will produced by the Understanding cleerly seeing and conceiting practically what is to be done and out of that sight moving and indeed becoming the Will to do it cannot be changed till the Understanding change And if the Understanding be determin'd by Truth and that Truth clearly seen the Understanding cannot change because Truth can never turn into not-Truth I say clearly seen For Passion dims or blinds and so comes in Sin § 2. We shall find that in one way the Soul works upon the Body in the other the Body works upon the Soul Where the Habit is produced by repeated Acts it is caused in the Soul by the influence of the Body whose Spirits and Organs being fitted by constant use and readily concurring to such Actions carry the soul along with them In the other way the Action begins from the Soul by whose predominance over the Body those Spirits and Organs are fitted and concur with readiness and ease to her Directions yet both arrive at the same End a fitting disposition both of Soul and Body § 3. Notwithstanding since Effects must needs partake the nature of their Causes though true Devotion be an effect of both ways yet this Effect cannot but have Consequences and Operations as different as the Causes are which produce it The Devotion caus'd by Knowledg is proper for more refined Souls such as are able to penetrate into and judg of the nature of things and guide their Actions by their judgments The other for tempers less rational and who not able to go alone require to be led The former can only be lost by a wilful neglect of cultivating those Principles which caus'd it and which are not soon nor easily pluckt up where once they have taken deep root The other perishes both sooner and more easily by bare dis-use of the material actions by which it was produc'd And indeed they who have only custom from whence they can derive their Devotion generally run great hazard of a total decay in virtue upon any considerable neglect of their customary Exercises § 4. Yet in some respects this Material Way is less subject to Involuntary distraction in Prayer than the other because this way of Prayer being in a manner confused and an Elevation of the Mind to God in common as it were without distinct application of the soul to particular Motives which should advance her to new degrees of fervency it costs her by consequence little labour and obliges her not out of weariness to divert to new Objects Again this kind of Prayer having little or no height of Spirituality but being sutable to Fancy finds in the Brain Proper Species agreeable to the thoughts he has who Prays whereas the other straining after Objects purely spiritual of which we have no proper Species has by consequence less ground in Nature to fix the Attention § 5. In some respects too the Spiritual Way has the advantage in this point of Distraction For the distinct considerations to which the soul applyes her self are apt from their being Distinct to fix the Attention because they afford her a particular Entertainment to which she may attend As for Weariness when she finds that prevail and render her unfit to continue her Prayer longer she leavs it off for the present to resume it when she is better dispos'd And when some use has provided her of Spirits fit for her purpose she will seldom have cause to break off for weariness but may Pray with ease as long as is necessary or useful § 6. Hitherto we have discourst of these two kinds of Devotion as they are in their own nature If we upon look them as they are in the Subject we shall find those of the material way generally great valuers of External Acts They place all Spiritual Goodness in frequenting them think them Saints who are addicted to long Prayers and assiduously repairing to Churches and Sacraments proceeding too often to censure those as little less than voyd of all goodness whom they observe not to be still as their Beads or the like And this proceeds not from defect in Devotion on the contrary it seldom happens but where it is strong and much valu'd but from the weakness of the person who has it and who being neither us'd nor able to judge of the nature of things comprehends not how he can be Devout who does not do those Actions continually which by Experience he finds useful and necessary to Devotion in himself Those of the other Way place all their Treasure in Interiour Dispositions and for Outward Actions chuse them by Judgment and practice so many and such as they find useful to the Inward Affections They think persons more or less Saints as their Souls possess more or less of those true Spiritual Riches and hence value and endeavour so to improve their minds in the Knowledg of Spiritual things as being the connatural means to produce good Affections which the others fancy not but rather condemn as a hinderance to Devotion because they perceive no efficacy nor fruit of it in themselves § 7. The former placing much of their Devotion in performance of the External Act as going often to Confession Communion c. are not generally altogether so solicitous of due Preparation or at least aim not by their preparation to work their souls into a disposition fit to advance in true Vertue and perfection of the Interior by a connatural efficacy of the Action upon such a disposition but following Faith unexplicated by true Theology expect the fruit from a supernatural operation of Grace beyond their comprehension fixt to and accompanying the Action The later apprehending the benefit to be expected from those Actions depends after a connatural way upon the disposition with which they
nothing but true deliberate or reflecting Reason teaches that Contraries belong still to the same Subject and therefore Devotion being an Affection of the Will Sloth must needs be so too And besides 't is evident that all Intellectual Vices are defects of the Understanding-Power that is Error or Ignorance as on the contrary all its Perfections are Knowledges of Truths But there is no kind of shew that Sloth should formally consist in Ignorance or Error or Devotion in Knowledge since they who have much Knowledge may withall be very Slothful and those who have very little may be very Devout very ready and very constant in the performance of all Christian Duties to their Power § 2. Hence follows in confirmation of the former Doctrine that as long as the Intention to pray persevers sincere there can be no sin of Sloth nor ground of scruple of not having pray'd as one ought For so long the Will is not faulty and so there is no moral defect nor sin at all in a Prayer no better performed but all the imperfection in it springs either from Nature or circumstances indisposing the Fancy or perhaps from want of skill or information in the Understanding Power how to go about one's Prayer which is so far a fault as there is negligence in the will to use due means to attain so requisit a Knowledg Wherfore in case any one doubts whether he have behav'd himself negligently carelesly or distractedly in his prayer he must consider well whether he intended that carelesness or those distractions For if he did not 't is evident it happen'd besides his Intention and so was no moral fault § 3. But yet this word Intention is equivoral and may be mistaken There are who think they do great matters if for Example they make as they call it an Intention in the morning of spending the following day in vertue and the service of God when perhaps they never think of God or vertue after This is but deceipt and 't would be no better to use the formality of making an act fancy'd to be an Intention of praying before Prayer and then spend the time of Prayer in a free and uncheckt entertainment of distractive suggestions § 4. To understand the business we must remember that every Action has a Finall as well as an Efficient or Material and Formal cause and that a man can no more act without a Why then a What. This End when we know what we do is foreseen and the Actor means or intends it So that the Intention is woven into the Action and a kind of part of it as if I go down or up stairs I intend to be at the bottom or top nor can it happen otherwise if the action be rational and accompany'd with Knowledg And if any action be done otherwise as when people walk or do other things in their Sleep or with a perfect Inadvertence it is not counted a Human Action In this sence as no Action can be without an Intention no more then without an End so neither can the Intention be without the Action For 't is as I said before a kind of part of it and we should laugh at him who would perswade us he had an Actual Intention of being at the bottom of the stairs yet voluntarily stay'd at the top But as the understanding sees things to come as well as past and present it may see what is like to follow from an Action before the Action it self and from that sight resolve or reject it and may resolve for the future as well as present time and so intend before she acts And in this sence Intention may be both before and without Action which before it come to be executed the Intention may possibly change Intention is taken in this notion by those who amuse themselves with making artificial Intentions before hand For plainly they intend for the future and when the time comes do nothing often-times of what they intended and remain deluded Now I understand Intention in the former sence that is for such an Intention as accompanies the Action and needs no formal endeavours on our part to make it Since nature will joyn it to the Action though we should endeavour never so much the contrary For it is altogether as idle to imagin he who knows what he does can have a not-Intention to go down Stairs who actually goes down as that he has one I mean for the present who stays above Wherfore since this kind of Intention cannot be sever'd from the Action 't is cleer that who thus intends to pray truly prays though never so many distractive thoughts interrupt and confound his Action Neither are they unless he voluntarily admit and mean to think of such things properly Actions of his but rather Passions or Sufferings For as the Eye cannot chuse but see what is represented to it nor hinder it self from transmitting to the soul what it sees nor the soul from perceiving what is transmitted so neither can the soul hinder her self from receiving the impressions made by the inward stroaks of fluttering Fancies nor those impressions from having their Effect but is in both cases more passive than active and doth not so much do any thing as hath somthing done upon her SECT 3. Remedies against Sloth § 1. TO return to the matter in hand All that can be said of this dryness and disgustfulness in Prayer caused by the not complying of the inferior part of the Soul with the superior is this that 't is a Disposition and indeed Temptation to the sin of Sloth § 2. By that Tediousness It first tires then discourages and after frights us till at last it gains so much upon us as to make us yeild our selves over to a neglect sometimes omission of customary decent or ohligatory Prayers and the same may be said in some proportion of our yeilding to those Difficulties which oppose our exercising other devout Acts. Here then it is that a devout Christian soul must faithfully fight Gods Battel and never consent for want of gust or for feeling disgust to omit her Devotitions § 3. One of the best weapons she has to defend her self is upon consideration of what has been and more what will be said to settle a firm judgment that this state of Distraction is no ways faulty This judgment would be made not at the instant of Prayer for then 't is to be put in practise and the Prayer exercised by it and so is needful to be had already not then to be gotten but at some fit season before hand when the Fancies are most calm ' and the soul can act with most cleernes and force And when 't is once made let the soul be sure to act steadily according to it and pray on how strongly soever Disgust or Dryness or whatever Engin the Devil chuses to imploy may tempt her to the contrary A little Resolution will compass this assisted with the Reflexion how unreasonable it is to
performance of Prayer § 8. Freedome of Spirit is another great help in this case Distractedness for the most part proceeding from worldly matters which our too great concern in them is perpetually suggesting to our thoughts He that can contrive himself into circumstances which free him from having any thing to do with the World more then to make use of the means it affords him to gain Heaven is in the happiest condition and likely to find least disturbance in Prayer He that cannot free himself from business let him free himself from all unnecessary concerns for it and settle this judgment firmly in his Soul That reason permits him not to be farther concern'd cern'd for worldly affairs let their importance be what it will than as they depend on him That success is out of his power and depends not on him but Providence to which he should contentedly resign it and must whether he be content or no That his part and all the share he has in any Action is to use his endeavours according to the best of his skill That when he has allotted the time which is necessary for this and imploy'd it as well as he can he has done all he has to do or can do in these matters and ought to be concern'd no farther but is now at liberty to employ the time allotted for Prayer in the Best manner Likewise That there is no business which takes up so much time as not to leave sufficient for Prayer if negligence more than business do not hinder and the like But above all let him still remember that whatever other business he have or can have and I do not except any not love to Parents care of Children the strongest and most rational tyes to the nearest and most dearest Relations nay the pursuit of things most necessary even of Livelyhood of Cloths and Meat is of no importance in comparison of this If this succeed not he is undone and that Eternally however he thrive in others And if this succeed no miscarriage in any or all the rest can hinder him from being Eternally Happy He that lives gloriously and with full Satisfaction of all his desires is wretched if he go at last into Hell and after his short dream of Happiness wake into a horrid and never ending real misery And he who lives despised and scorn'd and dyes starved with cold or hunger is happy if he go to heaven and find his short and now ended suffrings swallowed up in infinite Bliss So that in truth to amuse our selves with what happens in this life to the prejudice of what is to come hereafter is a folly infinitly more senceless then what we can fancy most ridiculous § 9. This Freedom of Spirit is a Disposition so highly conducive to Devotion that it ought to be preserv'd even in the immediate means to it I mean in our Prayers and reading devout Books in case they be not obligagory or that after a deliberate consideration with the assistance and advice of our Spiritual Director it appears not that we have already made choice of the best and see that others are improper or less beneficial For there are many good Souls so strangely fixt by a habituated Custome of saying such and such Prayers that they fall into Scruples if upon occasion they hap to omit or change them and yet let them examin their own thoughts to the bottom they can discover no reason or ground of such a Scruple but the aukwardness of breaking a longinur'd Custom And to such persons it seems very advisable in my judgment that they omit them in very good occasions or with good advice change them that so freeing themselves thus from the tyrannous slavery of Custome and the biggottery of irrational fears they may inure themselves still to follow Right Reason in what they do and no other motives of which they can give no account which is indeed to assert and preserve the just Liberty of Spirit due by the Laws of Nature and Grace where no contrary Duty or Obligation does restrain it § 10. There are divers reasons why we should not always use the same Prayers and run still in one track One is because a perpetual custom hinders our attention to the sense and due penetration of the words in which chiefly consists the Fruit or spiritual advance by Prayer Another is the irrational scruple as was said of leaving off what meer Custom has addicted one to which is a fault or imperfection and so ought to be amended A third because it is not to be expected in this state that our Spirit should be always in one humour or disposition and 't is best that every thing be wrought upon according as it is dispos'd to have the Effect produc't in it A fourth and principal reason is because our Soul every day grows or should grow in spirituality at least at every competent distance season or stage of our Lifes Race she must needs by the very practise of a vertuous Christian Life have gain'd a considerable advance though perhaps she discern it not especially while 't is growing and 't is as irrational to think the same thoughts are apt to fit her in all states as to think that our Bodies ought always to be fed with Milk because we eat nothing else when we were Infants I for my part know no one Devotion suting all sorts all states all times and every pitch but that which was made by the Wisdom of the Eternal Father who fully comprehended them all I mean the Lords Prayer § 11. But the best help of all is a good Director For as in the Body the same diseases proceed somtimes from different causes and require different ways of cure so it is in the Mind too It may happen that the same indisposition which in some proceed from the Impersection of Nature may be caused by the Perfection of Nature in others A Soul fitted for higher Operations than these in which she is imploy'd and straining at them by a natural propension and yet not reaching them for want of Instruction may fall into the same unsatisfactory condition which happens to other Souls from other causes A good Director is as necessary in such cases as a good Doctor where diseases spring from not usual and not easily perceived causes However our conduct is sure to be so much the wiser as he has more Wisdom than our selves In this particular there are but two things to be observed to chuse one who is truly fit and then to treat freely with him They are both of great importance but need not be farther dilated SECT IV. Of the two chief kinds of Devotion § 1. BEcause Devotion is a steady bent of the Will to Spiritual Operations and there be two ways by which the Will may come to this disposition those two different Methods make two sorts or Kinds of Devotion For the Will may be wrought to this temper either by a Habit got as other Habits
are done are as much solicitous about the Disposition as the Action and labour more to perform them well than often unless their spiritual Director judg them fit for both but always with a Preparation suitable to the Reverence due to institutes so Sacred and Divine Those being altogether affected to many and those the most Customary Prayers often slubber them over sometimes with so litle application of the mind that there is not so much as a becoming Reverence in the posture of the Body They litle heed the sence as they go along and consider not how or how far it affects their souls and wanting that which is the proper Rule to direct their choice if chance dispose not otherwise generally make use of such as they see us'd by others apprehending some great matter in the very words and for that reason chusing somtimes Latin Prayers though they understand not one word of the Language And yet by the proportion this way has to their Pitch of Soul this conceit of some great thing in common concurrs so well with their right-set intentions that they pray very well better than where they understand more and conceipt less The other sort being knowingly devout or Spirituall who as St. Paul says Omnia dijudicant discern or distinguish all things and holding themselves at liberty where God or his Church has layd no command take for their Rule the Good of their Souls and believe this Good to consist in a Right Disposition They therfore chuse such Prayers and Books as they find by experience most useful to this purpose and contain such Motives as are most Efficacious to raise their Souls to Heaven They are no ways affected to what they do not understand and comprehend not how Ignorance one of the chief curses of Original Sin should ever be the Mother of Devotion They are more for the few and well than the many and often at a venture They are always careful to accompany their Prayers with a grave and reverent gesture and an attention piercing into as far as they are able and distinctly penetrating the force of the Words which they expect should contain such an Affective sence as is apt to wing their Souls for Heaven § 8. The former too are more addicted to Corporal the later to Spiritual Works of Mercy and as those fancy no great matter in the advancing of Truth supposing we have once Faith so these see no advantage to the world in relieving any necessity incident to the Body comparable to that of bettering mens Souls which they see will follow from the advancing of Truth Solid Goodness being the genuin Off-spring of Solid Knowledg § 9. Lastly the difference of these two Spirits is great in Relation to comportment and human conversation They whose study it is to guide themselvs by Right Reason the true Nature which God has given us apply it to all their Actions whence their carriage is even their Friendship steady their Judgment stay'd and just their thoughts Charitable They hearken to proposals with calmness and indifference and believe without good grounds slowly The others are more apt to be humorous stifly addicted to any opinion taken up of course inconstant in their purposes and friendships partial in their Verdicts credulous even of Toyes and of which no solid ground appears if they suit their Fancy unwilling to hear any Reason son which Crosses the conceit they have once espous'd And for want of duly weighing the nature and reason of things Rash Concluders Censorious of every thing that runs not just in the track of their thoughts and fierce Reprehenders of what they think amiss And yet these imperfections when they happen hinder not a good meaning and right-set intention All this while they may heartily wish and love what 's agreeable to Gods will and hate whatever is contrary only by the shortness of their Reason or untoward circumstances they are preoccupated with a wrong conceit of their own way and see not what is agreeable and what contrary to the Will of God And so afford those of the other sort a fair Occasion of Exercising a double Charity in bearing with their Imperfections and by sweet ways instructing their Ignorance § 10. But we must not think that these two sorts of Devout people are found in the World fixt in an indivisible point as they seem here described I fear there are not very many perfectly of the one kind and hope there are not very many just of the other I only intended to describe the standards of these two Spirits which are participated with a thousand unequal degrees now of the one now of the other sort and interwoven with a variety almost infinit according as natural Genius Instruction and other circumstances have allotted their proportions § 11. Let be it our task oemulari charismata meliora with a true Christian Ambition to aim at what 's best and highest but yet remember too that what 's best in it self is not always best for every particular and resolve upon better advise than our own to pursue the Unum necessarium that way which is most expedient for our Souls The truth is these Methods as different as they are may both be needful almost for every one Few or no understandings are so sublime as not to admit and even need the assistance of frequenting outward Acts which beget Habits And few so low as may not be improv'd to contribute and that considerably to the benefit of the material way if good Instruction be not wanting Wherefore neither should the Intelligent Devote neglect the constant use of outward Acts of Devotion nor the Material one to improve his outward exercises by joyning as much Understanding to them as he can SECT V. Of the means to attain Devotion THe means of attaining both sorts of Devotion are already toucht in Common but the subject deserves to be treated more particularly In the Material way because the effect is wrought in the Soul by impressions first made on the Body that which imports is that these Impressions be as strong as may be and as many for a weak cause often apply'd will produce the effect of a strong one Such exercises therefore are to be preferr'd as strike the inward sense and fancy most strongly but what ever they are they will become Efficacious if they be often enough repeated Those therefore for whom this way is proper should be exhorted to be assiduous in the outward exercises of Devotion whatever they be yet with this caution that the Frequency prejudice not their Efficacy For if they become so customary as to be done meerly out of custome they will loose much of their force Particular care is to be taken in this point about those Exercises which require an extraordinary Reverence and by the design of the Divine Institutor carry with them an awe and respect as the Sacraments c. For if according to the Maxim Consueta vilescunt Customary things grow vile our too